Welt laying machine



June 1,1943. P. J. CONNORS WELT LAYING MACHINE Filed March 9, 1942 2 Sheets-Sheet l June 1, 1943. P. J. coNNoRs 2,320,411

WEL I LAYING MACHINE Filed March 9, 1942 2 sheets-sheet 2 Patented June 1, 1943 WELT LAYING MACHINE Patrick J. ConnoraA rlington, Mass, assignor to United Shoe Machinery Corporation, Flemington, N..J., a corporation of-New Jersey Application March 9, 1942, Serial No; 433,853

Claims.

This invention relates to welt laying machines and is herein illustrated and described as" embodied in a welt laying machine of the type disclosed in United States Letters Patent No. 957,987, granted May 17, 1910, upon the application of George T. McLeod. The illustrated machine, like that disclosed in said Letters Patent, is provided with means for feeding the sole, means for guiding the welt to the sole, and means for pressing the welt upon the sole. Such machines are commonly used to attach the welt adhesively, the welt and the sole having had one or both of their adjoining surfaces previously coated with cement. It will become evident, however, that some of' the features of the invention disclosed herein may be useful when the Welt is to be secured to the sole by stitching or by other means, and the invention, therefore, in its broader-aspects, is not limited to the attaching of the welt adhesively.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a machine which can feed the work positively and which can operate upon a plain Well; and also upon a beaded welt without crushing the bead. In accordance with a feature of the invention, the illustrated machine is provided with a work support, means for guiding a strip of material such as a welt to a work piece suchas-a sole, and for pressing the strip upon the work piece, and means engageable with thework piece at one side of the strip for feeding the work piece. By thus arranging the feeding means at one side of the strip to be applied, a positive feeding device such as a toothed feed wheel may be usedwithout damaging the welt. Furthermore, since the feeding means does not operate through the welt it will not crush the bead of a beaded welt. Since the feeding means does not press upon the welt the illustrated machine is provided with a presser. foot for pressing the welt against the sole. This presser foot is constructedand arranged to serve also as a welt guide.

The invention further consists of various features of constructions and combinations ofparts herein disclosed and claimed.

In the drawings,

Fig. l is aside elevation of anillustrative machine;

in Fig. l

Fig. 3 is a sectional view taken on the line III-III of Fig. 2 and showing how the welt is pressed against the sole;

Fig. 4 is a perspective view of a sole to which the welt has-been applied; and

Fig. 2 is an end elevation of the machine shown Fig. 5 is a detail in elevation of a supplemental presser.

The work engaging instrumentalities of the illustrated machine comprise a driven sole-supporting feed roll it, a combined guide and presser foot 12 (Fig. 2) for guiding a welt W from a reel (no-t shown) to a sole S, and pressing it against the sole, a driven toothed feed wheel 14 engaging the upper surface of the sole at one side of the guide l2, and an edge gauge I5- for gauging the sole laterally. The feed wheel is may be provided with teeth of the type disclosed in United States Letters Patent No. 2,08%,348, granted June 22, 1937, upon the application of Norwood H. Knowlton;

The supporting structure of the illustrated machine comprises a frame I8 (Fig. 1) adapted to be secured upon a work bench. Pivotally mounted upon" apin 20 carried by the frame l8-is a head 22. Pivotally connected to the head 22 and dependingtherefrom is a rod 24 having a collar 26 adjustably secured upon the intermediate portion. Fulcrumed upon apin 28- carried by the frame is a lever 35;] having a forked end 32 embracing the rod 24 and engageable with the undersurface of the collar 26. A depending rod 34- connects the lever to a treadle 36. Ihe rod-24 extends downwardly through an opening in a lug 38 formed on the-frame. A compression-spring 40 surrounding the rod 24 is interposedbetween-the lug 38 and a nut 42 threaded upon the lower end portion of the rod 24.- Depression of the treadle operating through the lever will raise the head against the resistance of the spring. Engagement of the lever with theupper surface of the lug 38 limits the downward movement of the head to a normal position determined by the heightwise adjustment of the collar 28 on the rod 24.

The feed roll I9 is mounted upon a shaft 44 journaled in bearings formed in the frame l6, and driven by a gear 46 which in turn is driven by a gear A8-onthe-shaft-of a pulley 59 driven from any suitable source of power. The feed wheel I 4 is mounted upon a shaft 52- jo-urna-led in the head 22 and driven bya gear meshing with the gear 46. The up and down movements of the head about the pin- 20 arenot suficient to affect the engagement of the gears 54 and.

The welt guide and presser foot [2 is carried upon the lower end of a slide 56 which is slidable heightwise in a guideway formed in a composite bracket 58 mounted upon the head 22. The slide is retained in the guideway by a plate 86 having a curved lower extension 62 which servesas a guard for the feed wheel Hi. Extending upwardly from the slide and integral therewith is a threaded stem 64 which passes loosely through an opening formed in a lug 65 on a U-shaped upward extension 68 of the bracket 58. A compression spring 68 surrounds the stem 64 and is interposed between the under surface of the lug 65 and the upper surface of a collar 10 threaded upon the stem 64. The spring 68 thus urges the guide and presser foot l2 downwardly to a stop position determined by a nut 12 threaded upon the stem above the lug 65 and engageable with the upper surface thereof. A look nut 14 holds the nut in adjusted position.

The guide and presser foot I2 comprises an elongated block 16 extending in the direction of feed. The bottom surface of the block 16 is inclined from th horizontal at about the angle assumed by the welt in its passage to the point of application to the sole. The block is secured to the slide 56 by a clamping screw T! (Fig. 2) threaded into th slide 56. A tongue 19 on the slide engages a corresponding groove in the block to guide the block for adjustment in a direction transverse to the feed of the work. The screw 1'! passes through an opening in the block, the opening being elongated to permit such adjustment. Extending the length of the block and formed in the bottom surface thereof i a groove 18 (Figs. 2 and 3). The purpose of this groove is to accommodate a bead B formed on the welt W with ample clearance for the bead both heightwise and laterally. Th bottom surface of the block is smooth for engagement with the body portion of the welt at opposite sides of the bead, and it constitutes th upper surface of a guideway for the welt. This guideway is completed by a channel shaped cover plate 80 (Figs. 2 and 3), the left side flange of which is secured to the block by screws 8|. The inner surface of the base of the cover plate is smooth, and it constitutes the lower surface of the guideway, being spaced from the bottom surface of the block by a distance greater than the thickness of the welt. The shape of the guideway in cross section is that of an inverted letter T, with the groove 18 corresponding to the stem of the T, and with the bas of the cover plate 80 opposite the stem of the T. The cover plate is just wide enough to accommodate the welt with running clearance. It may readily b replaced by a cover plate of different width for a narrower or wider welt. As shown in Fig. 2, the base and the side flanges of the cover plate are cut away in a horizontal plane 83 to enable the welt to emerge from its guideway and to engage the sole at a locality just in advance of the rear end of the block 16. The rear portion of the bottom surface of the block bears downwardly against the welt to press the welt against the sole and thereby to cause the welt to adhere to the sole. The pressure of the block upon the welt is derived from the spring 68. The rear end of the block is defined by a rounded surface 82 extending upwardly from the bottom surface of the block.

A supplemental presser 84 (Figs. 2, 3 and 5) integral with a slide 85 has a notch 88 formed in its lower end to enable it to bear upon the welt on each side of th bead B. The slide 85 is T-shaped in cross section and engages a vertical guideway of complemental cross section formed in the rear portion of the bracket 58. The slide 85 is yieldably urged down by a spring 8! to a stop position determined by a pin 88 secured in the bracket. The upper end of the spring 8! extends into a hole in a block 9! and engages a screw 89 threaded into said hole, the compression of th spring being adjusted by turning the screw. The block 9| fills the upper portion of the T-shaped guideway, and is secured to the bracket 58 by screws 93. The lower end of the spring 81 is seated in a recess in the slide 85.

The edge gage 18 has a vertical work-engaging surface which is rounded for engagement with the advancing sole, and which extends rearwardly to engage th edge of the sole at the locality where the welt emerges from its guide slot. The edge gage i secured by clamping screws 90 threaded into a bracket 92 which in turn is mounted on the frame IS. The edge gage has a slide which fits a horizontal guideway 94 (Fig. 1) to provide for adjustment of the edge gage in a direction transverse to the feed of the work. Elongated openings 96 in the edge gage are provided for the screws 90.

For cutting the welt after the desired mark has been applied to the sole, there is provided a knife 98 (Fig. 1) carried upon a bar I00 and operated by a treadle (not shown). This knife together with its operating mechanism is similar to that disclosed in the above-mentioned Letters Patent No. 957,987, to which reference may be had for a more complete disclosure. The knife is preferably ground to provide a continuation of its longitudinal cutting edge around its end portion.

To operate the machine the treadle 36 is depressed to raise the head 22, thereby lifting the feed wheel l4 and the guide and presser foot l2. A sole S is then inserted between the feed wheel and the feed roll I0 with the edge of the sole against the gauge I5. The treadle is then released to enable the feed wheel to engage the sole and also to enable the welt guide and presser foot to move downwardly. The welt W, which is drawn from an overhead reel (not shown), has previously been threaded into the slot far enough to enable the lower or rearward end of the block 76 to press the welt against the sole. One of the adjoining faces of the welt and the sole and preferably both adjoining faces had previously been coated with cement, and the pressure of the block 15 under the influence of the spring 68 is sufficient to cause the welt to adhere to the sole. Such adhesion, however, is further assured by the supplemental presser 84. The toothed feed wheel l4 in cooperation with the feed roll 10 feeds the sole positively; and the welt W, being adhesively attached to the sole, is thus drawn automatically from its reel. It will be noted that while the bottom surface of the block 76 presses upon the welt on both sides of the bead the stem portion of the T-shaped groove is of sufficient depth to accommodate the bead without crushing it. It will be noted also that the toothed feed wheel operates upon the sole at one side of the welt and therefore does not damage the welt. When the sole has been fed far enough to cause the desired length of welt to be applied, the operator cuts the welt by means of the knife mechanism above-mentioned, causing the knife 98 to sever the welt just rearwardly of the rounded end 82 of the block 76. The next length of welt to be applied is thus left threaded in the guide slot in readiness of application to a-sole.

Having described the invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. A machine for applying. a welt to a sole,

comprising a sole support, a guide for leading a strip of welt to the sole, means for causing said guide to press the welt upon the sole, and feeding means offset from said guide and engageable with the sole.

2. In a machine for applying a strip of material to a work piece, a work support, means for guiding a strip of material to a work piece on said work support and for pressing the strip upon the work piece, and means engageable with the work piece at one side of the guided strip for feeding the Work piece.

3. In a machine for applying a strip of material to a work piece, a driven feed and worksupporting roll, a combined guide and presser foot for guiding a strip of material to a work piece and for pressing the strip upon the work piece at a locality over said work-supporting roll, and a driven feed wheel engageable with the work piece at a locality over the work-supporting roll and to one side of the guide and presser foot.

4. In a machine for applying a strip of ma terial to a work piece, a work support, a combined guide and presser foot for guiding a strip of material to a work piece and for pressing the strip upon the work piece, a feed wheel engageable With the work piece, a head in which said feed wheel is mounted, mean-s for supporting said head for movement toward and away from the work, .a spring urging said head toward the work to maintain the feed wheel in engagement with the work piece, said spring being yieldable to accommodate varying thicknesses of the work piece, a carrier on said head for said guide and presser foot, said carrier being constructed and arranged for movement of the guide and presser foot relatively to the head, and a spring for urging said guide and presser foot against, the strip and for enabling the guide and presser foot to yield independently of the feed wheel.

5. A machine for adhesively applying a welt to a sole, comprising a sole support, an edge gage for guiding a sole on said support, a combined welt guide and presser foot for pressing a Welt upon the sole, and feeding means operating upon the sole at a locality to one side of the guide and presser foot.

6. A machine for adhesively applying a welt to a sole, comprising a lower driven roll for supporting and feeding a sole, an edge gage for guiding the sole, a combined welt guide and presser foot for pressing a welt upon the sole, a driven upper feed wheel operating upon the sole at a locality to one side of the guide and presser foot, a spring yieldably urging the feed wheel against the sole, 3 and a spring urging the welt guide and presser foot against the welt and enabling the welt guide and presser foot to yield independently of the feed wheel.

7. A machine for adhesively applying a welt to a sole, comprising a lower driven roll for supporting and feeding a sole, an edge gage for guiding the sole, a combined welt guide and presser foot for pressing a welt upon the sole, a driven upper feed wheel operating upon the sole at a locality to one side of the guide and presser foot, a head pivotally mounted for movement toward and from the work and carrying said feed wheel, a spring acting upon the head to urge the feed wheel yieldingly against the sole, a guide- Way in said head, said guide and presser foot be ing slidably mounted in said guideway for movement toward and from the Welt, and a spring for yieldably urging said guide and presser foot downwardly in said guideway against the welt.

8. In a machine for adhesively applying a beaded welt to a sole, a sole support, a guide constructed and arranged to guide a beaded welt to the sole on said support and to apply pressure to the welt on both sides of the bead to press the welt against the sole, and a supplemental presser engageable with the welt on both sides of the bead for pressing the welt upon the sole.

9. In a machine for adhesively applying a beaded welt to a sole, a sole support, a guide constructed and arranged to guide a beaded welt to the sole and to apply pressure to the welt on both sides of the bead to press the welt against the sole, a supplemental presser constructed and arranged to apply further pressure to the welt on both sides of the bead to press the welt against the sole, a head, a resilient connection between said guide and said head for supplying the operating pressure to the guide, and an independently yieldable resilient connection between said supplemental presser and said head for supplying the operating pressure to the supplemental presser.

10. A combined Welt guide and presser foot for adhesively applying a beaded welt to a sole, said guide and presser foot having a slot which is T- shaped in cross section, the bar of the T serving to accommodate the body portion of the welt and the stem of the T serving to accommodate the head, the wall of the slot opposite the stem terminating in advance of the wall adjacent to the stem to enable the welt to engage the sole while the Wall adjacent to the stern bears upon the welt on both sides of the bead to press the welt against the sole.

PATRICK J. CONNORS. 

